Racial and Gender Stereotypes all around us

1. 2-22-2009: CBS- 7:30 p.m.

Television

The Amazing Race

Racial stereotypes reinforced when during a challenge two African American sisters are shown to complete an athletic/physical challenge faster than either of the two white women in the show. Reinforces the idea that African Americans are suppose to be faster and better at athletics.

Racial Stereotypes

2. 2-22-2009: ABC- 8:00 p.m.

Television

The Academy Awards

Gender Stereotypes are found in the simple fact that Hugh Jackman, a man, is the host. It seems as though men are the hosts of awards shows 90% of the time. To me this seems as if a woman could not handle the pressure or be able to hold it together and entertain as the host of a major award show.

Gender Stereotypes

3. 2-23-2009: NBC- 8:00 p.m. 

Television 

Heroes

How we see those that are different from us, whatever we feel comfortable with, as a threat because maybe one or two people that are different from us are bad (criminals, rude, etc). 

Racial Stereotypes

4. 2-23-2009: @10:00 p.m.

Personal conversation with friend Brooke

468 College Ave.

Discussing men are thought to be immasculine if they watch a "chick-flick," and more over why most men refuse to see them; however they don't seem to understand why we as women could care less to watch the Dark Knight 4 times in one week. 

Gender Stereotype

5. 2-24-2009: Bravo- 8:00 p.m.

Television

The Real Housewives of Orange County Reunion Show

Portraying "real women" as housewives for one, and also portraying that "real women" are caddy, argumentative, should be worried about their appearance, and uninhibited. 

Gender Stereotype

http://www.eonline.com/uberblog/b101551_real_housewives_talk_smack_in_reunion.html

6. 2-24-2009 @ 9:30 p.m.

Personal Conversation with my roommate Lindsay

468 College Ave

Discussing the Real Housewives of New York City show, and how all of the women are younger than their husbands. Got into the conversation of how it is widely accepted and almost condoned for a man to marry a younger woman, but how it is taboo for an older woman to marry a younger man.

Gender Stereotypes

7. 2-25-2009 @11:00 a.m.

Advertising Campaigns Class- Maddie

Gaylord College

Discussing why we are targeting mainly women with kids for our campaign and not men with kids or whole families. Goes back to the idea that women make the decisions for where to eat dinner and everything that has to do with home-maker concepts.

Gender Stereotypes

8. 2-26-2009: ABC-8:00 p.m.

Television

Grey's Anatomy

Racial Stereotyping in shown in the character Christina who is of asian decent, and is thought to be the unemotional, extremely intelligent, anal retentive surgeon. This reinforces racial stereotypes of asians being smart, quite (with her about her emotions), and perfectionists.

Racial Stereotypes

9. 2-26-2009: Bravo- 9:30

Television

Millionaire Matchmaker

The two men are wealthy white bachelors and all of the women that have been chosen to pair up with them are white as well. This is a racial stereotype of it being taboo for a white person to be dating a black person, especially when neither of the men said they weren't attracted to women of different racial backgrounds. 

Racial Stereotype

10. 2-27-2009: MTV HITS- 2:00 p.m.

Music Video

The Game feat. Lil Wayne: "My Life"

The video continually shows African American people living in poor areas, with many of them dying (from what looks like being shot), but driving extremely nice cars. It also shows them running from the cops and robbing convienient stores. 

Racial Stereotypes

I was actually not that surprised with the amount of racial stereotyping I saw in the media. Racial profiling and stereotyping is just one more way the world categorizes us, suppresses us, uses our likenesses or differences against us, and it happens in our daily lives, so to see it occur in a majority of media forms isn't astonishing. I didn't experience any racial stereotyping personally; however, I can most definitely see how much of an affect these images have had on us over the years. Seeing these ads, television shows, and music videos on a daily basis our entire lives has shaped how we think and act whether we realize it or not. 

White Privilege

I am a woman, American, and white, but what does that mean to me..? Probably not the same thing as it means to an American woman who is Latino, Asian, or African-American. In the same way that a Latino, Asian, or African- American woman's perception of herself would be different than mine of hers. Before I go any further into this, I just want to say that I understand that a certain privilege does exist for people of white skin color, but I can't help but wonder who actually relizes that they are taking advantage of that privilege. I say this because if we know not what we do, and its affects on others, than how are we to change or even more is change even possible as a society? I say this because, if you take one of the core problems of this privilege like the differences of educational institutions between the white population and multicultured institutions, it is proven that the institutions as well as educations of the minority are not as good as the white (European-decent) school systems. This is a serious problem and that needs to be addressed, but many white people who are willing to help fight this are unsure of the means to do so. Just like with health care being harder to get and less quality for minorities than it is for white people...we do not know how to change this. I think if we were taught at a younger age that this problems exist and have it explained in grave detail as to how this emerged (meaning the full truth of U.S. History and its ramifications-- not the public school system's sugar coated version) then some of these barriers for the multicultured could be brought out in the open and therefore, have some solutions discussed. Also, I think that this is allow many white people to gain compassion and understanding for those who have had privilges taken away from them because of our history, and cause more of us to want to take action and provide more equal opportunties. I know that becoming educated on these matters has opened my eyes to a problems that I either usually choose not to see or didn't even know existed, so I think a more raw intellect on the problems of white privilege would be crucial towards a future with less selfish people, leading to a more others-serving world.
http://www.rethinkingschools.org/archive/15_02/Int152.shtml

Grammy Images

As usual the 2009 Grammy Awards were a sight to be seen. Amongst the collaborations, some ingenious and some not, but none the less entertaining, I was excited to see some old faces on the scene. Good to see that Whitney Houston is back and looked spectacular and most of all Blink 182 is getting back together. Going back to the performances, one of my favorites was the collaboration of Justin Timberlake and T.I. singing "Dead and Gone.". I don't know if you have ever actually listened to the lyrics and really taken in the words of the song, but they are not only spectacular, but meaningful. A song can also mean whatever you make it out to be, so my opinion of it is likely to be different from others and what I take from it will be different as well. Understanding this, I really like the message that we can turn away from all of our differences and embrace that we all have one thing in common- our creator, savior, Jesus. Yes, I know that it is not probable at all that this is what others will get from the song. I just think that if we all embraced the life that Jesus laid out for us to live, and we walked as closely as we could (obviously with a countless number of sins) that the color of our skin wouldn't matter, that we could love each other the way we were made to, and that idea can only be derived one by one. Showing each other love when they show us hate, praying for those who act ungraciously towards us, and being thankful for everything we have, no matter how much or little that is (hence not be envious of others).For those who are not believers in Jesus, have you ever read the gospels and thought his ideas were revolutionary? Do you disagree that his teachings would make this world a better place? While I now know that I have moved a great ways away from the topic, I think that it is so easy to get caught up in the worldly things especially when watching things like the Grammy's and other awards shows. I, like others, look at the elegant dresses and tend to be envious and think what a great life they (celebrities) have and again become somewhat envious. It is important for all of us to realize why we are here in order to get America, and this world back on track. Also, since professor Flippin- Wynn likes music, I'm putting in a 2009 Grammy nominated song that correlates well to what I have said. The song is called "Give Me Your Eyes" by artist Brandon Heath. It is not the actual music video (sorry). Thanks for listening to me ramble on.

Personal Reflection- 2009 Super Bowl Ads

Every year I am as excited about the Super Bowl commericals as I am the actual game. This is not exactly news considering I think most women feel that way, and some men...but they just don't want to sound immasculine by saying it. ( kind of joking) I started thinking about the masculine and femine role that women feel like they must play, whether in life or on television--and this is especially true for advertisements. That brought me to think about a couple of the ads that I saw, that as funny as some were, they were still gender skewed. The first was the Doritos commercial, The Power of the Crunch.The first scene in the commercial is of a man eating a Doritos chip and the crunch seemed to blow the women's clothes off of her body. While it was entertaining to some extent, and these messages are obviously geared towards men because it is the Super Bowl, it has to make one wonder what that even has to do with eating Doritos. We all know that if you eat Doritos chips that women's clothes are going to come flying off, nor money burst out from an ATM machine at you, or turn police men into monkeys. This commercial cheapens womens to the products of a man's desires and to the lowest extent the crunch of a chip. The second commercial I thought about was the GoDaddy.com commercial in which the women are talking about "enhancements" meaning and even as far as to even explicitly define at the end of the commercial that they were talking about womens breast sizes. While one of the four women clarifies that she is talking about enhancing her image with a domain name and web address from GoDaddy.com. This is not the point though. The point is that the women were being prosecuted on the grounds of "enhancement" and most of the women's answers to the judges questions are far from intelligent. Plus, you could even see gender roles in the actual character's roles as the women are objects of sex and some sort outlaws, while the men are the lawyers and judges. I don't want to sound like this over bearing feminist because I am not, but I think it is important to look at the reasons behind why these commercials are designed to place men in certain positions and women as some what of a lower opposing role.